Buscar:tribute 04

The Remedy is a classic, soulful house bounce with glossy, sultry jazz infusions - peak Summertime vibes. I also pay tribute to my afro-electronic, percussive roots with Ritual which is the complete opposite of The Remedy. Ritual is mighty on the low end, it's seductive with hypnotic horns, an earth-shaking bass line and a rhythmic groove throughout. This track is an absolute weapon for the club :)

Apocalyptica Plays Metallica Vol. 2 continues the journey that began in 1996, when four cellists from the world-famous Sibelius Academy in Helsinki created a symphonic tribute to the greatest of the Big Four - heavy metal titans Metallica. For their tenth album, the classically-oriented rockers return to their roots to bring a legendary story full circle. There are also a number of surprises, starting with a unique collaboration.

The third single from the album "One" of Metallica's 1988 milestone "And Justice For All" is a stunning reinterpretation of one of the Big Four's greatest musical moments - a true highlight in their 40-year career. The single features Metallica frontman James Hetfield himself performing the inimitable, now immortal lyrics in a stirring spoken word interpretation. This is more than a unique collaboration, this is history in the making.

Apocalyptica Plays Metallica Vol. 2 was produced by longtime collaborator and studio superstar Joe Barresi (Queens of the Stone Age, Soundgarden, Nine Inch Nails, Tool) and will be released on June 7 via new label Throwdown Entertainment.

As the winds of music blow, a wise heart navigates the spiral, finding wisdom in each of its twists and turns.

As the releases of DUBBLACK’s catalogue pile up, the novelty and exploration for new music keeps on thriving.


A brand-new record is approaching, as always available both on a 12” vinyl – limited to 300 copies – and in digital format, featuring the presence of two Masters from the Electronic Music scene: A2 Abd El Monim and Tocchitek.


The two-track EP baptised “Dark Side” includes the gems “Euriale” and “Steno”; two expansive compositions that, also due to their length, masterly observe the task of narrating two complementary stories, each with its distinct moments, yet marked by a strong rhythmic temper. Both tracks are planned to share similar sonic elements: a pulsating 160 bpm kick drum, ghostly pads serving as an inevitable backdrop, and indispensable rhythmic details enriching the whole structure and arrangement.


A2 Abd El Monim, born Alan Abd El Monim, is an Italian-Egyptian artist/composer. He expresses himself through the creation of music ranging from electronic to purely instrumental, and through the interaction between the arts. His poetics opens in a “dark” dimension that considers and interprets the facts through the notion of shadows and darkness but also through penombre. His “dark” vision stands as a filter through which he reads the world and its interactions, therefore using also the notion of light. His music has been performed in Festivals including Musica d’arte (Riccione – Italy), Luci d’Artista (Salerno – Italy), GAMO (Firenze – Italy), Spazio Musica (Cagliari – Italy), On Air – On site (Den Haag -Netherlands), Sound Spaces (Malmö – Sweden), etc.


He composed songs for the solo exhibition “La pelle degli oggetti” and for works Lui&Lei by the artist Giovanni Oberti. In 2020 he undertook a collaboration with the poet Milo De Angelis , putting to music the lyric “A volte , sull’orlo della notte, si rimane sospesi”. He wrote music for several theatre performances by director Emily Tartamelli and has written music for several directors films including Reto Gelshorn, Enea Francia, Paola Piscitelli and Fabio Corbellini. He collaborated with the London based fashion brand B DODI and was invited as an artist to participate in the collective exhibition “Instructions to Light-Keepers” (Milano – Italy). In March 2023, “Periodo Nero”, its interactive and generative installation music and video, was selected for the tribute to Picasso in the city of Florence, will be presented at the Certosa of Florence in September of the same year. In 2017 he won the International Competition of Composizione Silenzio Musica, in 2020 the diploma from President and Artistic Director of Winterreise International Composition Competition Moscow, in 2021 the Call For Scores banned by the Cultural Association Esecutori di Metallo su Carta. A2 Abd El Monim is signed to international label F.M.T Records and Dubblack Records, with which he regularly publishes his electronic music.


Tocchitek is an underground Tekno producer and performer born in Milan, Italy. He started playing live in 2007 as part of the “Approdo Caronte” sound system based in Milan. His first significant appearance as a live performer was at a “Mayday Parade” in 2008 in Milan. In 2009, he joined the “R909 Records” chapters crew based in Milan, bringing his live set to many local club dance floors. Meanwhile, he collaborated and played with many crews around Europe, spreading his music in the free Underground Tekno movement. In 2021, in Milan, he launched “F.M.T Records”.


Simplicity is often the hardest thing to achieve when producing this type of music, primarily designed for uncompromising dance-floors, but the duo successfully channels their message with purity and truthfulness.


The visual aspects of layout and design are once again entrusted to Vittorio Valigi, who puts a greyscale spiral at the center of the cover. A spiral within which one an eye can be glimpsed – the eye of the musical soul of DUBBLACK harmoniously fused with that of A2 Abd El Monim and Tocchitek, who become worthy ambassadors of the Dubblack’s sonic mission.

Noir Brésil is the debut album from Franco-Brazilian artist, composer and producer Yndi. Formerly known as Dream Koala, she decided to retire the moniker back in 2017 and began writing what ultimately became Noir Brésil, a modern pop album where afro-Brazilian percussion meets French and Portuguese poetry to create an immersive soundscape. As Dream Koala, Yndi released EPs Odyssey (2013,) Earth. Home. Destroyed. (2014,) and Exodus (2015,) as well as popular single "We Can't Be Friends", gaining her international success and garnering multi-millions of streams across platforms. In 2020, there were so many images of black people suffering on social media. After that traumatizing year, Yndi needed images showing that being black wasn't only about suffering, she wanted healing images. It's exactly what the Afro-Brazilian culture has been doing for centuries, it conveys a strength that keeps us alive in a dehumanizing society. The title track "Noir Brésil" is a poem for her ancestors. Yndi wrote "Amazona" on an atabaque (Afro-Brazilian percussion) rhythm inspired by the myth of the Amazons, warrior women, and Douanier Rousseau's painting La Guerre. The violence of the lyrics contrasts with the melancholic harmonies. The song pays tribute to the anger and strength required by women to live in the contemporary world. The song "Novo Mundo" and its animated video directed by Nina-Lou Giachettia are a reflection of Brazil, through luminous and colorful landscapes. Here the evocation of the divine, the beauty and the violence of nature reflects perfectly the essence of Yndi'sdebut album.

Reissue of the first three 12” in the record series dedicated to musicians who took part in the Greetings festival. It happened in 1987, it was time for Materiali Sonori 10th anniversary, an historic goal for the label/collective born in the small Tuscany village of San Giovanni Valdarno. The small celebration brought to life a box collecting the first 3 Eps of the Greetings from S.G.V. series. The series was intended as symbolic sound postcard, made with various musicians with whom the collective label shared a path, whether small or long. The Durutti Column, The Stockholm Monsters and Blaine R. Reininger (Tuxedomoon) are among the artist who took part to the project, here collected for the very first time. Lantern is pleased to pay tribute to the work of people whose passion, attitude, commitment and genuineness inspired this adventure still true to these days. "Our presence in this small tuscan town is almost casual... physically we were born and grew up here, while our hearts and our minds were travelling to Paris, Berlin, Brussels, New York or London" (Giampiero Bigazzi of Marteriali Sonori , taken from the original inner sleeves notes).

In the wake of a profound loss, Marie Klock, a neo-chanson singer and multi-instrumentalist from Paris, presents a poignant tribute with her debut on Pingipung. On “Damien est vivant” Marie Klock pays homage to the poet Damien Schultz, who has recently passed. They were intertwined both in artistic collaboration and deep friendship.
Marie Klock creates a powerful ode to Damien Schultz's surreal, anarchic, witty and at times provocatively obscene French (English translations are included in the vinyl release). The poet's own voice resounds alongside Klock's, oscillating between spoken word and neo-folk vocals. Recorded in an intimate lo-fi setting with co- producer Julien Louvet, the 10 songs are far from a mournful requiem. They showcase idiosyncratic pop music brimming with humour and absurdity. “Damien est vivant” is a celebration of the unique bond they shared, in past and present. The melancholy sometimes takes on an almost whimsical quality, an allusion to the world as perceived through the lens of two kindred spirits.

Marie Klock has appeared as keyboardist on international stages with Sofia Portanet and collaborated with artists such as Jean-Louis Costes, Chilly Gonzales, Charlotte Brandi and Adrienne Pauly. Her self-titled solo LP (2020, Les Disques De La Face Cachée) was a cheeky outing of her synth-chanson act. She is currently working on a duo album with Anadol, to be released on Pingipung in autumn 2024.
“Damien est vivant” will be released on Good Friday 2024. Marie Klock will present the album in live ceremonies.

On a faim!" was originally an anarchist music fanzine created in 1984.
An entire network, with no geographical ties, grew up around the fanzine, helping to write articles and distribute them (often by hand). The fanzine's name even began to appear in connection with the organisation of concerts (Ludwig Von 88, Raymonde et les Blancs Becs, les Thugs, Les Ejectés, Kortatu, Yo Pizza Jump, etc.) and the creation of radio programmes.
The On A Faim ! label came into being at the end of the 80s, following the release of a host of live tapes and themed compilations: "A Bas Toutes Les Armées", "Cette Machine Sert A Tuer Tous Les Fascistes", "Ni Jah Ni Maitre", "Pogo Avec Les Loups". Then came the first artistic albums with Désert Culturel, Un Dolor, Have Nots, Kargols, Pleum, Mister Moonlight, Rude Boy System... Here again, the artistic choices were made primarily on the basis of human encounters, the attention paid to the bands' approach and discourse, and their attitude to the public... even before listening to the slightest demo!

Archives de la Zone Mondiale wanted to pay tribute to this inspiring label, which marked the history of independent and committed music for nearly 15 years. With one of its founders, Jean Pierre Levaray, we have cleverly concocted a sort of musical anthology retracing the essential bands that have marked the history of the label and the fanzine.

On A Faim ! - Anarchy & Musik is a double 20-track vinyl compilation in a highly graphic gatefold sleeve, retracing the label's extraordinary trajectory regardless of musical style: punk, of course, but also ska, hardcore and popular chanson...

Last but not least, all the royalties from this double vinyl compilation are donated to the Uzine (Le Havre) and Fanzinarium (Paris) fanzine libraries.

Approaching the 50th-anniversary release of Artreform, the label's boss, Kyiv-based DJ and sound producer JOSS is counting on experienced artists. The fresh record
with an updated modern design from the abstract art master Elemetalsource boasts two tech-house powerhouses at once: Fedo, the lead artist from Odessa, and Okain,
the Berlin-based musician and owner of Talman Records, who was invited as a remixer.

The three original tracks from Fedo deliver detached, robotic minimal house that could be playing on an interplanetary station as its well-coordinated machinery works
in unison. It is club-centric music with a moving, inventive groove, albeit without any live emotions. A respectful tribute to those 90s cult Plastic City records, and at the
same time, trendy sound for modern minimal and microhouse parties.

Okain's injection boosts the release's dynamics with more thumping rhythms and a hypnotic atmosphere. Nevertheless, this special guest star from Berlin flows in
organically, enhancing Fedo's material with his trademark style, perfected through years of releases on Bpitch Control and Tsuba, and thoroughly tested on Europe's best dancefloors.

Kid Katana Records teamed up once again with Dotemu, Tribute Games and Nickelodeon to release TMNT: Shredder’s Revenge Dimension Shellshock OST, a brand new musical experience composed by Tee Lopes!

Inspired by the music of one of the most iconic pop culture licenses of all time, this OST was fully composed by Tee Lopes, the talent behind the music of Sonic Mania and Streets of Rage 4: Mr X’s Nightmare and of course Shredder's Revenge vanilla game OST. His musical vision echoes the spirit of the turtles and this specific game specificities: tributes to classic TMNT tunes with a good dose of fun and switching fluidly between 80s/90s electro, funk, rock, and jazzy tunes with chiptune vibes.

This edition includes:
-> 1x 12-inch vinyl featuring the 15 tracks in the Dimension Shellshock DLC
-> 2 colored vinyl labels with the two new playable characters: Usagi Yojimbo and Karai

-> Exclusive sticker board with all playable characters and iconic items from the game

and Sebastian Kokus and the prolific Ulf Schütte, the Hamburg-based trio has tirelessly expanded upon its sound and extended its musical style. After 2022’s »S/T« documented the results of their first jam sessions as a newly-founded group, »V.A.« started even more modestly and became an even bigger undertaking. Originally conceived as a small one-off release, it grew into a full record which sees the group embracing dub music, collaborating with Peaking Lights’ Aaron Coyes and inviting other artists—No UFO’s, Seekers International, Coco Em—who reworked select tracks in true dub style. »V.A.« is marked by inconsistency, openness, and heterogeneity in the best sense of those words: ever-changing, constantly surprising and consistently in motion.

The starting point for »V.A.« was a Hamburg concert in December 2022 together with Coyes, who played a solo set as Peaking Lights. On the request of the event organiser, Cloud Management teamed up with him for a jam session after the gig, laying the foundation for a track that the group took to the studio before sending it to Coyes to record vocals for it. Another song quickly followed and even though the band initially intended to release »PST« and »0rten Pitch« as standalone 7” single, they soon decided to have others create versions of the two tunes to round them off in the form of a 12” EP. Once more though, one thing led to another and now »V.A.« collects five original pieces by Cloud Management as well as three—four on the digital version—remixes by other artists.

Collaborating with Leipzig-based Canadian producer No UFO’s, the Canadian Seekers International collective, and Kenyan multi-disciplinary artist Coco Em came about organically. As fans of their friend Konrad Jandavs’ work for labels such as Spectrum Spools, Root Strata and his own Nice Up International, Korf, Kokus and Schütte asked him for a remix and granted him full creative freedom for his take on »PST«. Jandavs also connected them with the prolific Richmond-based soundsystem worshippers, who present their take on the same track on this record as well as a version of »Electric CD.« Also this track appears three times on the record, having been re-rubbed by Emma Mbeki Nzioka, who was introduced to the the trio by its label Altin Village & Mine.

There isn’t really a common thread running through the rough digi-dub of No UFO’s take on »PST«, Seekers International’s traditionally-minded yet infinitely playful dub-psychedelia and Coco Em’s bass-heavy, percussive, pulsating take on »Electric CD.« However, as a group dedicated to staying in flux at all times, Cloud Management ended up embracing the creative differences between their own work and those of their respective collaborators. In calling it »V.A.,« they paid tribute to their somewhat loose, but conceptually consistent concept of giving various artists full creative licence over their own work. Neither a true album in the strict sense of the world nor just a compilation, »V.A.« is actually the essential Cloud Management record: ever-changing, constantly surprising, consistently in motion.

Edinburgh (via Bristol) producer, DJ and balearic psychonaut takes us on a playful exploration through his cosmic arboretum on the Memory of Stolen Bush EP, with four of his own tracks and a very tasty remix from Berlin’s Glenn Astro. Café Lotito draws us into a world of atmospheric chug with dreamy whistles, rich, saturated pads and sneaky acid lines sitting atop a tasteful break and a steady, thudding kick. Gottlieb's Lament drops the tempo further, into a shimmering, melancholic lagoon of dubby psychedel ia, with marimbas and melodicas dancing amongst the mournful, lysergic synth work.
The B side steps straight into the dance with the EP’s namesake In The Shadow Of The Oleander, a pulsing, acidic drum machine workout, bustling with percs and bleeps and cru nchy rhythms, all set to a backdrop of soaring pads and drifting harmonics. Glenn Astro’s remix of Oleander pumps things up into an epic, maximalist realm with huge synth lines and a squarely pounding rhythm section turning the playful roller into a peak ti me thumper. Finally the digital bonus track Memories of Hare uses surrealist snippets of colour to pay tribute to a much missed former Bristol haunt, dropping the tempo back down and putting melody and atmosphere front and centre, with a ghostly marimba l eading the procession beside staccato guitars and shimmering synths unknown

'New World Artifacts' is the debut album from Rouen, France-based group Unschooling, arriving following their 2021 'Random Acts of Total Control' EP and 2019's 'Defensive Designs' tape. Out October 6th via Bad Vibrations, it's a collection of lo-fi post-punk clocking in at 30 minutes, underscored with subtle pop melodies and structures but never far away from bouts of chaotic no-wave dissonance. Here, Unschooling claim loud and clear their desire to return to a sound which is less calibrated, less obvious. As they themselves write, "New World Artifacts is an ode to the unexpected, a tribute to many art rock bands who are always where you least expect them." Already heralded as one of the most exciting up-and-comers in the new school of post-punk revivalists, having spent the last couple of years playing to busy crowds and festival fields across the continent, 'New World Artifacts' might just mark them out as the best in class. The Unschooling quintet, as referred to on the album's collage artwork, is made up of Vincent Fevrier (Vocals/Guitar), Damien Tebbal (Bass), Paul Morvant (Guitar), Marc Lebreuilly (Guitar/Synth) and Thomas Fromager (Drums). Although their music might revel in discord, it is a calculated one. The musicianship is complex and meticulous, hardened by their time spent together playing on the road. For 'New World Artifacts', additional musicians were also brought in to expand the sound in new ways, including saxophonists Levi Gillis (The Dip, Beat Connection) and Emeline Morisset (Les Agamemnonz), and Kyleen King (Stephen Malkmus & The Jicks, My Morning Jacket) on strings. Pressing Info: 180g blue vinyl, limited to 300 hand-numbered copies ww, download card included.

'New World Artifacts' is the debut album from Rouen, France-based group Unschooling, arriving following their 2021 'Random Acts of Total Control' EP and 2019's 'Defensive Designs' tape. Out October 6th via Bad Vibrations, it's a collection of lo-fi post-punk clocking in at 30 minutes, underscored with subtle pop melodies and structures but never far away from bouts of chaotic no-wave dissonance. Here, Unschooling claim loud and clear their desire to return to a sound which is less calibrated, less obvious. As they themselves write, "New World Artifacts is an ode to the unexpected, a tribute to many art rock bands who are always where you least expect them." Already heralded as one of the most exciting up-and-comers in the new school of post-punk revivalists, having spent the last couple of years playing to busy crowds and festival fields across the continent, 'New World Artifacts' might just mark them out as the best in class. The Unschooling quintet, as referred to on the album's collage artwork, is made up of Vincent Fevrier (Vocals/Guitar), Damien Tebbal (Bass), Paul Morvant (Guitar), Marc Lebreuilly (Guitar/Synth) and Thomas Fromager (Drums). Although their music might revel in discord, it is a calculated one. The musicianship is complex and meticulous, hardened by their time spent together playing on the road. For 'New World Artifacts', additional musicians were also brought in to expand the sound in new ways, including saxophonists Levi Gillis (The Dip, Beat Connection) and Emeline Morisset (Les Agamemnonz), and Kyleen King (Stephen Malkmus & The Jicks, My Morning Jacket) on strings. Pressing Info: 180g blue vinyl, limited to 300 hand-numbered copies ww, download card included.

Wewantsounds is delighted to announce the release of Ryuichi Sakamoto's classic LP "Ongaku Zukan", originally issued in Japan on his own School label in 1984.

The reissue will replicate the original Japanese release which offered two versions: a normal edition featuring the LP with a bonus 2-track 7" EP (WWSLP71), and a limited edition which includes a 3-track 12" EP in place of the 7" (WWSLP72)

Remastered by Saidera Mastering in Tokyo the reissue boasts the original gatefold artwork plus an extra 2-page insert with new liner notes by Andy Beta



The early '80s were a turning point for Japanese musician Ryuichi Sakamoto. As a solo artist, the smash hit soundtrack he had composed for 1983's "Merry Christmas Mr. Lawrence" (a film in which he had also acted), had put him on the verge of becoming a global superstar. Meanwhile he had called a halt to his work with Yellow Magic Orchestra; the influential, globally successful pop trio calling it quits after the release of their 1983 album "Naughty Boys".

Against this backdrop, Sakamoto descended on Tokyo's Onkyo Haus Studio to record his fourth solo album, "Ongaku Zukan" ("Musical Encyclopedia") accompanied by a handful of musicians including his ex-YMO partners Haruomi Hosono and Yukihiro Takahashi, and the prolifically talented Yasuaki Shimizu, Tatsuro Yamashita and Toshinori Kondo. Sakamoto began with no particular plan in mind, recording 30 basic tracks over the best part of 1983. It was on his return to the studio the following year that the album truly began to take shape. Accompanied by a newly acquired Fairlight CMI sampler, the musician made extensive use of the revolutionary equipment to create a wide palette of sound textures which he added to the tracks, a creatively fertile process that was captured on film for the French documentary "Tokyo Melody, A Film about Ryuichi Sakamoto".)

Released in August 1984 the album "Ongaku Zukan" proved a huge success, providing Sakamoto with his first top 5 hit in Japan. Filled with inspired melodies that showcase his unique gift as a composer, it offers up a fascinating mix of styles. Asiatic electro pop nuggets ("Tibetan Dance") share space with futuristic ambient pieces ("Hane no Hayashi de"), and brilliantly creative fusions of jazz, funk, techno and reggae ("Etude" and "Tabi no Kyokuhoki.")

Two simultaneous editions of the album were released in Japan: the regular one featuring a bonus 7" EP with two extra tracks: "Replica" and "Ma Mère l'Oye" while a limited edition added a 12" EP (in lieu of the 7") which included a third track, "Tibetan Dance (Version)." An international version was released two years later in 1986 by 10 Records/Virgin under the title "Illustrated Musical Encyclopedia," but with a very different track list. Five tracks from "Ongaku Zukan" were dropped, namely "Self Portrait," "Tabi no kyokuhoku," "Mori no Hito," "A Tribute to N.J.P" and "Tibetan Dance (Version)", to be replaced by two non-album singles from 1985, "Stepping Into Asia" and "Field Work."

This is the very first time that the two 1984 Japanese editions of Ryuichi Sakamoto's classic album have been released internationally in collaboration with the artist's management and Midi Inc., with remastered audio and the original artwork faithfully reproduced, paying tribute to one of contemporary music's undisputed geniuses.

Wewantsounds is delighted to announce the release of Ryuichi Sakamoto's classic LP "Ongaku Zukan", originally issued in Japan on his own School label in 1984.

The reissue will replicate the original Japanese release which offered two versions: a normal edition featuring the LP with a bonus 2-track 7" EP (WWSLP71), and a limited edition which includes a 3-track 12" EP in place of the 7" (WWSLP72)

Remastered by Saidera Mastering in Tokyo the reissue boasts the original gatefold artwork plus an extra 2-page insert with new liner notes by Andy Beta



The early '80s were a turning point for Japanese musician Ryuichi Sakamoto. As a solo artist, the smash hit soundtrack he had composed for 1983's "Merry Christmas Mr. Lawrence" (a film in which he had also acted), had put him on the verge of becoming a global superstar. Meanwhile he had called a halt to his work with Yellow Magic Orchestra; the influential, globally successful pop trio calling it quits after the release of their 1983 album "Naughty Boys".

Against this backdrop, Sakamoto descended on Tokyo's Onkyo Haus Studio to record his fourth solo album, "Ongaku Zukan" ("Musical Encyclopedia") accompanied by a handful of musicians including his ex-YMO partners Haruomi Hosono and Yukihiro Takahashi, and the prolifically talented Yasuaki Shimizu, Tatsuro Yamashita and Toshinori Kondo. Sakamoto began with no particular plan in mind, recording 30 basic tracks over the best part of 1983. It was on his return to the studio the following year that the album truly began to take shape. Accompanied by a newly acquired Fairlight CMI sampler, the musician made extensive use of the revolutionary equipment to create a wide palette of sound textures which he added to the tracks, a creatively fertile process that was captured on film for the French documentary "Tokyo Melody, A Film about Ryuichi Sakamoto".)

Released in August 1984 the album "Ongaku Zukan" proved a huge success, providing Sakamoto with his first top 5 hit in Japan. Filled with inspired melodies that showcase his unique gift as a composer, it offers up a fascinating mix of styles. Asiatic electro pop nuggets ("Tibetan Dance") share space with futuristic ambient pieces ("Hane no Hayashi de"), and brilliantly creative fusions of jazz, funk, techno and reggae ("Etude" and "Tabi no Kyokuhoki.")

Two simultaneous editions of the album were released in Japan: the regular one featuring a bonus 7" EP with two extra tracks: "Replica" and "Ma Mère l'Oye" while a limited edition added a 12" EP (in lieu of the 7") which included a third track, "Tibetan Dance (Version)." An international version was released two years later in 1986 by 10 Records/Virgin under the title "Illustrated Musical Encyclopedia," but with a very different track list. Five tracks from "Ongaku Zukan" were dropped, namely "Self Portrait," "Tabi no kyokuhoku," "Mori no Hito," "A Tribute to N.J.P" and "Tibetan Dance (Version)", to be replaced by two non-album singles from 1985, "Stepping Into Asia" and "Field Work."

This is the very first time that the two 1984 Japanese editions of Ryuichi Sakamoto's classic album have been released internationally in collaboration with the artist's management and Midi Inc., with remastered audio and the original artwork faithfully reproduced, paying tribute to one of contemporary music's undisputed geniuses.

Long out-of-print release available digitally for the first time. Extensive notes by a local writer in English and French. Previously unpublished family photos. Urbanized traditional music at a dance-floor-friendly tempo. The very definition of an "Awesome Tape From Africa". Roger Bekono made a deep mark in the contemporary history of Cameroonian music through the four-on-the-floor, ribald intensity of bikutsi. The Ewondo-language dance-pop style that forms an undulating tapestry of interlocking triplet rhythmic interplay came to international prominence in the European "world music" scene as the 90s began. But the relentless sound of bikutsi developed in Yaoundé at the hands of Bekono and many others, as it developed from a village-based singing style performed mostly by women into a cosmopolitan music force that rivaled the popularity of established musics like Congolese rhumba, merengue and makossa. With his unique—some say suave—voice, Bekono contributed much over a period of more than 10 years as part of the evolution of this traditional rhythm-turned-urban dance movement. Bekono worked with legendary producer Mystic Jim, who had built a prolific home studio along with a crack team of musicians. They joined as part of the production of his self-titled album, which became known locally as "Jolie Poupée," the name of the album's lead single and most popular song. For "Jolie Poupée" Mystic Jim programmed the kick or bass drum, adding effects to have a heavier bass. Overall the album represented a new level of finesse and professionalism for his second release. In the middle of 1989, Jolie Poupée was released by the label Inter Diffusion System and aggressively hit the radio, discos and national television. The music video for the title track was on loop on TV. It felt like everyone was talking about it, even artists in adjacent music scenes like makossa. The album came out on vinyl and cassette and remains Bekono's best-selling recording to this day. With Jolie Poupée Bekono finally made an impact outside Cameroon as the record captured listeners in some Central African countries like Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, Republic of Congo and Sao Tome & Principe. In these countries, we find the Fang or Mfan people (also known as Ekang), Bantu-speaking ethnic groups that are also found in Cameroon. This umbrella language group includes the language in which bikutsi is mainly sung. Most of Bekono's songs are in French, Ewondo (of which Beti is a dialect) and Pidgin. The four songs on Jolie Poupée are all considered bikutsi classics. On September 15, 2016, Bekono died of a long illness at the age of 62. In the wake of his passing the media published a wave of tributes, thanking him for what he did for Cameroonian music. He was an admired musician, songwriter and guitarist, and some of his old colleagues and some of the new generation of performers showered Bekono with vibrant tributes via social media, many of which noting something to the effect of: "The artist dies but his works remain."

"Akuphone is proud to present the Jerusalem-based improvisational trio Leviot and its hypnotizing debut album. Leviot (Hebrew for “Lionesses”) is a brainchild of multi-faceted musician and composer Yael Lavie, who’s joined by classically trained percussionist and music teacher Cnaan Canetti, and synth enthusiast Yishay Seroussi. The project is a result of Lavie’s ongoing explorations beyond the restraints of classical kanun playing and fascination with electronic sound and modern composition. Initially started following her experience performing and recording with Spiritczualic Enhancement Center, in Leviot, Yael gives up rehearsed pieces in favour of improvised sets, based on virtuous interpretation by Cnaan and Yishay. The three have been active since 2019, playing their immersive shows in a wide variety of settings, venues and festivals. The trio’s debut release is a live session, recorded in late 2020 at Mazkeka Studios (Jerusalem) for the lockdown edition of the annual Zikuk Festival. It’s a meditative improv piece in five parts that combines and melts boundaries between the traditional and the experimental, the primal and the futuristic. With setup as the foundation of the piece and Lavie’s graphic score as the road map, Leviot takes off on a cosmic journey between deep drones, whispering chimes, mesmerizing Arab melodies, pulsating rhythms and iridescent ambient patterns."

Tape

When Leon Michels and El Michels Affair released their rst record, Sounding Out The City, in 2005, it was hard to guess what was next for Michels and his then-introduced, now-patented "cinematic soul" sound. Now, four EMA studio albums and scores of tribute and remix projects later - all while producing for some of the biggest names in the industry - Michels has trademarked his sound, with each project taking audiences somewhere new and pushing the boundaries of what he is known for. The man is a river, not a lake and this time he takes his golden touch into the realm of hip-hop laying down a musical bed for one of the greatest to ever rhyme into a microphone: Black Thought of The Roots crew. Releasing on Big Crown Records, the LP is called Glorious Game and it is a remarkable debut partnership in more ways than one. Michels provides his bottom-heavy, soul-tinged production for Black Thought who gives us some of the more personal and transparent verses we've ever heard from him. Michels and Black Thought have been in each other's orbit for a while now. The two first met in the 2000s when Thought was first getting familiar with the contemporary soul scene. "Out of that whole world, Menahan Street Band was probably my favorite," recalling the funk and soul group Michels was a founding member of back in 2007. Fast forward a few years and musicians from that collective - Dave Guy on trumpet and Ian Hendrickson-Smith on sax - are now full time players with The Roots. This connection eventually led Leon and Thought to doing a few fundraising events around NYC and Philly together. "Before long, Black Thought was coming around the studio and would jam with us from time to time," Michels explains. "Then, fast forward to 2020 and COVID lockdowns, he just hit me up out of the blue, wanting me to send him stuff to write to. We both were looking to stay busy" Being that Black Thought is the co-founder and emcee for, hands down, the best live-band group in hip-hop. Michels took a decidedly different approach to this project and instead of sending recorded tracks of live compositions, he pulled out the sampler and sampled himself and some records from his collection. "I'm a big fan of soul music," as if Michels has to remind us. "And part of hip-hop's appeal to me has always been the sample-based production" For Glorious Game, Michels would make wholly composed and recorded soul songs in his studio, sample himself, then chop and/or loop up his sounds and create instrumentals for Black Thought. On some tracks he took a more traditional hip-hop approach, starting from samples of other people's music but then adding live instrumentation on top. But for the most part, it's him reinterpreting his own compositions into something new. The result is an organic feel of loop-based tracks that breathe and uctuate enough for Black Thought to ex on. "What I write about is determined by the equation of the producer's energy and my energy," Black Thought says. "It's about where we meet." So armed with Michels sampled and re-sampled soul cinematics, Black Thought rhymes through personal memories.

As a solo artist and as a member of the duo Perrey and Kingsley, Jean-Jacques Perrey was one of the leading innovators of earlyelectronic music, and a trailblazer of the Moog synthesizer. Alongside composers like Wendy Carlos, Bruce Haack, and frequent collaborator Gershon Kingsley, Perrey was among the first to introduce the world to the synthesizer as a compositional instrument,via notable tracks such as "Musique de L'infini", "Gossipo Perpetuo", and "Baroque Hoedown", famously used as the theme music to Disneyland's Main Street Electrical Parade. Along with many of his contemporaries it was inevitable that such an influential instrumental composer would eventually be sampled into hip-hop tracks. His 1970 Moog composition "E.V.A." was especially popular among producers, making its way into tracks by Gang Starr, Dr. Octagon, Lord Finesse, Pete Rock, and innumerable others. To pay tribute to this prominent composition, Kay-Dee Records is proud to present this loving tribute to "E.V.A." on a 7" single, courtesy of French producer DJ Paikan, who also played sitar, guitar, kobol synth, and monopoly synth on the track & Mixed by Kenny Dope !

Jens Brands has created a large number of installations, musical performances and Interactive Media works. He uses the concepts of parallel activities rather then ideas of fusion. The pieces presented on this recording focus on sonic events related to electronic music (such as intense volumes and dynamics, white noise, square or sine waves) but stay entirely acoustic.

On a live performance of »Ratchets«, the sounds are generated with the idea of a physical, sculptural, yet invisible presence. It might happen that the body of a person moving around in the audience has more impact on the sound then the variations produced by instruments themselves.

"I was always interested in the idea of making acoustic music that has the quality of electronic music," muses Dortmund based musician and visual artist Jens Brand. "Electronic music is fantastic, but I don't like speakers very much."

Take his performance entitled »Motors And Styrofoam«. Pieces of glistening white styrofoam fitted with small motors hang from the ceiling above the audience's heads, squatting balefully in mid-air like lopsided clouds. Acting as a resonator, the styrofoam amplifies the whirr of the motors, which builds up into a loud, persistent drone overlaid with overtones.

Equally uncompromising is »Ratchets«, which deploys a number of football rattles, those small wooden devices originally used by hunters. The ratchets are set in motion by motors whose speed and direction are controlled by a computer: they click busily away, producing a dense, enveloping sound reminiscent of heavy rainfall. In performance, the sound of the ratchets is spellbinding in its rawness and intensity, attaining impressive volumes as it interacts with the features of the space.

Triple coloured vinyl version (Each disc is a different colour) of the double CD that came out on Cherry Red in 2021 Presented in Tri-fold gatefold sleeve with 16 page 12x12 colour booklet, poster & photograph.
ONLY 350 COPIES WORLDWIDE
Among the first crop of Creation Records bands in the mid-1980s, THE LOFT seemed the most likely to break through. Following the success of The Smiths, guitar-based independent pop was in vogue, Alan McGee’s Creation label was turning heads – its bands blending 60s psychedelia, the melodic end of punk and a new sound which would soon be immortalised on NME’s C86 cassette. And in this London quartet, Creation had their answer to bands like Television, The Only Ones or early Modern Lovers, offering taut, off-kilter songs with an irresistibly deadpan cool.
Sadly, after just two singles, 1984’s downbeat debut ‘Why Does The Rain’ and the punchier sequel, ‘Up The Hill And Down The Slope’ – an indie hit which the band performed live on TV show The Oxford Road Show, The Loft dissolved, with various members founding new bands The Weather Prophets, The Caretaker Race and The Wishing Stones. They left behind seven studio tracks, a BBC Radio 1 session for Janice Long and one track from a Creation LP documenting the scene’s roots in small club The Living Room.
However, The Loft’s legend endured, eventually prompting a reunion in the early 2000s with all four original members – singer/songwriter/guitarist Pete Astor, guitarist Andy Strickland, bassist Bill Prince and drummer Dave Morgan. Alongside various well-received live shows, that led to a new single, ‘Model Village’ (2006) and more recently a session for Gideon Coe on BBC 6 Music (2015). The Loft’s reputation as founding fathers of a new breed of mid-80s indie pop continues to grow to this day, with the band often cited as an influence.
Compiled and coordinated by the band, Ghost Trains & Country Lanes expands on previous retrospectives of The Loft, adding those reunion recordings (including three previously unissued tracks), the Gideon Coe session and several live recordings from that historic performance at The Living Room back in 1984. (including many exclusive songs which were never recorded in the studio).
With new sleeve-notes by Danny Kelly, this is the definite tribute to The Loft

Afro-Finnish band Maajo return with their third album, "Water of Life," a fluid celebration of various influences. Supported by two preceding singles, "Better Days" and "Unelmissani," the album is the group's first release with the Brooklyn, NY-based tastemaker label Wonderwheel Recordings. Maajo's signature Afro-Balearic sound meets late eighties new age and fusion, with touches of modern soul. The addition of two band members, Waina and Gilbert K, as well as featuring artists Issiaka Dembele and Ismaila Sané, has rooted the album's stories in a diverse range of backgrounds, featuring vocals in no less than six different languages.

Gilbert K's drum grooves pay tribute to the late Tony Allen's legendary heritage and the percussion experiments on a more melodic and atmospheric tip. Cold synth pads and 303 squeaks blend with warm guitars, fretless bass, and Issiaka Dembele's sublime kora harps and balafon mallets. "Water of Life" shows a band at its maturation point, reaching the cross-cultural coalescence of Finnish-African sound that's ready for the dancefloor or home-listening.

The three vocalists take centre-stage on the album: Waina hails from Zambia and sings in Nyanja, English and Finnish; a renowned musician in Zambia for over two decades who now calls Finland home, Waina wrote a song that reached the finals of the 2020 Afrimusic contest. Gilbert K primarily sings in his native Mauritian Creole while comprising part of the percussion line. He made his way to Finland by way of South Africa and China, eventually winning the Voice of Finland show. Gilbert K has played with such legends as Tony Allen, Andy Summers, Diana King, and Suzanne Vega. Ismaila Sané is from the Casamance region of Southern Senegal and sings in Wolof (a widely-spoken language in West Africa) on "Ndekete," and in Jola (a smaller language in Casamance) on "Èwàn".

Maajo is a sonic, linguistic, and cultural melting pot that has come together in Tampere, Finland, like a tropical breeze from the cold north. Their musical explorations lead from equatorial soundscapes to the woods and moods of their native Scandinavia. African influences, electronic beats and organic rhythms, ethereality and the sounds of nature all make up the patchwork sound of Maajo.

Not only is Maajo's music a way of travelling to faraway places, the songs themselves have travelled all over the globe. Maajo has evolved from a sample-based electronic music project to a full-sized band, including African vocalists and musicians. The group has put out two full-length albums and three EP's on Queen Nanny records, in addition to a release on German label Permanent Vacation. Maajo has received the remix treatment from artists such as Luke Vibert and Call Super, and has toured festivals and clubs internationally. The band has built a dedicated international following having been championed by the likes of Gilles Peterson (Worldwide FM), Tom Ravenscroft (BBC Radio 6), and Tim Sweeney (Beats In Space), while they've been featured by KEXP (Song of the Day), Resident Advisor, Ransom Note, and Pan-African Music.

"Water of Life" is out on Wonderwheel Recordings October 14th, 2022, both digitally and as an exclusive, limited-run 2xLP.




d 04: Better Days (Kumba) feat. Waina & Gilbert K

The second volume of El Búho's "Tributaries" remix compilation series brings together 14 more remixes from UK born producer and remix extraordinaire Robin Perkins aka El Búho. Building on 2018's first volume, the evolution of the producer's sound and influences becomes clear. The album is threaded together by reinterpretations of traditional music in a new electronic-organic context. Be it Galician, Estonian, Colombian, Irish, Garifuna, Reunionnaise or Frenchfolkmusic, El Búho makes his own unique tribute to the originals, bringing them into his owlish universe.

The album mixes club-ready bangers with beautiful and moving interpretations, easily making sense both in your living room or behind the decks. We are treated to a wide delta of influences, styles and sounds, moving between the slow, psychedelic electronic cumbia take on Chadian group Pulo NDJ's Dabadji Am Alcorama across the Atlantic to the upbeat, dancefloor fire remix of Garifuna Collective Ideruni, from an anthemic version of No Más Velorio by Colombia's Plu Con Pla to a refreshing, driving remix of up and coming Reunionnaise producer Eat My Butterfly.

Tributaries offers both a nod to the past, paying tribute to traditions andfolkmusic around the world, and a vision of the future, carving out new channels and directions, transporting the flows of the past into the future.




d 04: Biomigrant - La Muerte (El Búho Remix) feat. Toño García & Fredys Arrieta
[e] 05: Eat My Butterfly - Dann Ton Zié (El Búho Remix) [feat. Sibu Manaï]

[g] 07: The Garifuna Collective - Ideruni (Help) [El Búho Remix]

Following the reissue of the self-titled debut by Tülay German & François Rabbath in 2021, we're presenting the 2nd and final part of our Tülay German reissues: "Homage to Nazım Hikmet" (1982). Once again in a duo setting with François Rabbath, Tülay German pays tribute to one of Turkey's greatest poets of the 20th century: Nazım
Hikmet (1902-1963).

Recorded in the early 80s this two-album workcycle refers heavily on turkish poets and the tradition of aşıks (singer-poets and wandering bards) and consists of unique and modern interpretations of turkish folk songs unmatched to this day.

Back in the 60s Tülay German (*1935 in Istanbul, Turkey) shook the turkish music landscape with several 7" records. Most notably her first 7" record Burçak Tarlası (1964) is now considered
the cornerstone of what was to become the Anadolu Rock/ Pop movement and underlines her rebellious nature and sense of justice. But due to increasing repression Tülay German and her
lifelong partner and intellectual impetus Erdem Buri decided to leave Turkey a few years later.

In France Tülay German signs a major contract with Philips resulting in many 7" releases sung in french under her french moniker Toulaϊ. In the long run Tülay German doesn't feel quite comfortable with this major deal. And thus, despite the success and recognition she had gained, she decides to quit the contract with Philips!

Later on she signs to independent world-music label Arion to pursue her actual artistic goals more in line with her origin and temperament. Back to her mother tongue, Tülay German records above mentioned albums for Arion under full artistic freedom, the only full-lenghths in
her 20+ years career. Alongside with double-bass virtuoso and turkophil François Rabbath (*1931 in Aleppo, Syria) the albums consist of aşık traditionals and intonated poems mainly by
Nazım Hikmet. Her passionate voice and the restrained arrangements of François Rabbath turn these centuries old melodies and poems into glowing manifestos for love and justice. The fruitful collaboration of these artists-in-exile adds significantly to the rich heritage of turkish folk music.

Nazım Hikmet (1902-1963) is considered as one of Turkey's greatest poets of the 20th century, though during his lifetime his works were banned in Turkey for decades and he spent most of his life in prison or in exile. He is up to this day a huge reference for turkish writers,
musicians and intellectuals.

Tülay German ended her musical career in 1987. In 2021 Tülay German was awarded with the Lifetime Achievement Award by the Istanbul Foundation for Culture and Arts, Turkey.

A Breath of Fresh Air is the triumphant, inspiring new album from Bread of Kaliwild, a longtime staple of the underground rap scene who continues to grow and shine as an emcee. And while he certainly made waves with the release of his solo debut, Daily Bread in 2019, Bread is on another level with the ten tracks on this project. It’s all part of his plan to capture the sound he loves and holds so dearly, all while pushing himself as a lyricist.

Specifically, the L.A. rap staple calls out “What Love Is” as one of his favorite lyrical moments, and it’s easy to see why when you hear it. During the third verse, he shows love to his children in a creative and heartfelt way like only he can. “What Love Is” is also one of several collaborations between Bread and living producer legend Nottz, one of the emcee’s go-to producers. The two linked for Daily Bread and kept creating magic for their tracks together on this record. Whether it’s on the politically charged “Eye 4 Eye” or on the moving Guru tribute “Nice Like That” (feat. Big Shug), Bread and Nottz are a force.

The Kaliwild rapper’s ear for production doesn’t stop there, either. His two other collaborators—beatsmiths Noah Ayala and Therealasethic—provide a wealth of warm, head-nodding instrumentals for Bread and his guests. Just listen to “Godz Return,” a funky West Coast banger produced by Ayala that also features Planet Asia. Or head to the Bay Area on “Feels So Good,” which boasts Therealasethic’s shimmering production and guest vocals from Keak da Sneak, URG7, and Gemini.

There’s so much to love about A Breath of Fresh Air, though the most remarkable aspect may just be Bread’s passion.

a 1 Let Us Begin (Intro) feat. DJ Romes

Ekkehard Ehlers' seminal plays series was originally released on three 12inches (Staubgold) and two 7inches (Bottrop-Boy) in very limited runs. The entire series was previously only available as a CD compilation or digitally. Keplar finally presents it on double vinyl for the first time, featuring a new cover artwork.

Domestic ethnology: Ekkehard Ehlers plays.

‘Play’ is a word in English with many meanings attached. Each one sends you down a different cognitive pathway. When I think of ‘playing’, in the sense of a game, I think of an activity involving more than one person. When Ekkehard Ehlers plays, he is very much on his own. Or, at least, alone but at the same time keeping intimate company with the artistic innovators named in his titles. Robert Johnson. John Cassavetes. Albert Ayler. Cornelius Cardew. Hubert Fichte. Is he playing with them, against them, about them, for them, to them? This can never be known.

It is certainly a mistake to try to hear the ‘work’ of these originals in the sounds played by Ekkehard. They’re not cover versions. They’re hardly tributes in the conventional sense. Cassavetes and Fichte are not even musicians, although music played an important part in both their careers. Sure, there are little nods and flashes of recognition – tiny guitar licks among the minimal beats of ‘Robert Johnson 2’; rich bowed instruments in ‘Albert Ayler’, recalling the violin, cello and double bass arrangements on Ayler’s 1967 Live in Greenwich Village LP; the elongated organ lines of ‘Cornelius Cardew 1’ gesturing towards passages in Paragraph 1 of the British composer’s 1971 Marxist monolith, The Great Learning. Ekkehard is not so much playing these figures as allowing himself to be played by them.

Playing as an activity also suggests freedom. Maybe the only thing all five named persons have in common is that they were all quiet radicals. In music, literature and cinema, they all stepped, without self-promotion or fanfare, into unmapped territories. Once there they found it necessary to invent new languages in order to survive. Necessity was the mother of their inventiveness. They were also uncomfortable avant gardists. Lonely types, fighting their corners out on the margins, with little reward, often misunderstood, ridiculed or ignored.

All died unfairly young. Fichte a victim of HIV/AIDS, Cassavetes of cirrhosis of the liver. (‘Cassavetes 2’ sounds like a tender farewell played across the 59 year old alcoholic director’s death bed.) The deaths of Johnson, Ayler and Cardew have never been satisfactorily explained, and remain shrouded in myths and conspiracy theories. The pioneering expeditions of all five began in that spirit of playful freedom, but inexorably drew them towards the heart of darkness.

So these ‘plays’ are micro-dramas, sonic soliloquies, monolog-ins to the private accounts of various geniuses in Ekkehard’s ‘follow’ list. Hacked sensibilities. Artistic manifestos boiled down and distilled, skinned and dried in the digital smokehouse. (Ekkehard Ehlers Flays.) Each of these plays was originally floated out into the world alone on its own disc. The collected works play well as a team – a tranquil, introspective experience where each artist has his own identifiably unique sound character. As an album, Plays is a ‘Plattenragout’ – a ‘record stew’ – which was the title of Hubert Fichte’s LP review column in the leftist culture magazine konkret in the 1960s. The novelist’s work investigating the cultures of South America and the Caribbean islands has been called ‘domestic ethnology’. The writer himself referred to his ‘ethnopoesie’. Ekkehard Ehlers’s intuitive electronic portraits are a form of domestic ethnology in themselves. Invoking another of Ekkehard’s musical aliases, they are portraits of cultural ‘autopoiesies’ – creators whose works were strong enough to have their own self-regenerating life force. (by Rob Young)

All tracks written and produced by Ekkehard Ehlers.
Featuring Stephan Mathieu, Joseph Suchy, Anka Hirsch.
Tracks A1 to C2 originally released on three 12inches via Staubgold.
Tracks D1 to D4 originally released on two 7inches via Bottrop-Boy.
Plays originally released as CD compilation in 2002 by Staubgold.
Mastered by Rashad Becker.
Cut to vinyl by Lupo, Berlin, 2022.
Redesigned by Sandra Kastl, 2022.
Photos by Ludger Blanke

Here at last is the reissue of the most sought-after track by French New Beat band French Theory. Originally released in 2008, this tribute to Boccacio (the revered temple of New Beat and EBM, located in Belgium) struck at the heart of the movement’s soul. It quickly gained cult status for its gloomy atmosphere, heavy industrial beats and catchy melodies that propelled the classic New Beat sound into the 21st century.

Out of print since then, it’s back in a limited edition, with the added energy of a powerful remaster by cult techno and acid master Thomas P. Heckmann (Trope, Drax, etc.), plus a brand new diversion exclusive to this vinyl on the flip. Get ready to wave the white glove again, and get lost in the music!

French theory is the New Beat alias of Guillaume U. Chifflot, one of the few French techno veterans in the New Beat & Techno-house genre, who started releasing tracks in the early 90s on his own multimedia label n9. Relaunched in the mid-2000s, the label releases techno and electronica, while pioneering an upgrade of New Beat in the wake of the Techno Body Music movement.

Raised somewhere between Ministry Of Sound’s ‘The Annual’ and early music message boards, Kolya’s taste still extends from obscure tape-only releases to turn-of-the-millennium trance anthems.

As a DJ, it’s taken the South Londoner from Bugged Out! to Berlin – at home supporting Demdike Stare with coldwave, spinning runway house alongside MikeQ while a House Of Trax resident, or unleashing noughties fidget at the closing of Camden’s infamous Lock Tavern. All of which is to say, his debut EP for Ecstasy Garage Disco arrives steeped in musical history.

Recorded during lockdown, it draws on perhaps his greatest love, deep (deep, deep) house. A soaring synth work out, opener ‘Stick Together’ is a case in point, standing on the shoulders of giants like Peter Daou, but with a life-affirming exuberance all of its own. ‘Miss Honey Prancin’ In The Twilite’, meanwhile, is a tribute to Moi Rene, as well as a love letter to Project X Records in general, her vocal recast over a groove that alternates between outer space iciness and snare-rolling high drama.

On the flip, ‘Crying Over Spilt Poppers’ blends the flavour of amyl-soaked Gherkin with the emotional nuance of Nu Groove, joyous and reflective in equal measure. And ‘Jamais Vu’ signs off, its bumping kick pattern and intertwining melodic layers connecting glimmering 90s electronica and contemporary, future-facing house.

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David Lovato’s first outing as LOVA, the superb Gypsophilia EP, was one of NuNorthern Soul’s most lauded and cherished releases of 2021 – a gorgeous collection of emotive, sun-soaked sounds from the mind of a producer who got his chance on the imprint after handing a USB of tracks to Phil Cooper at Hostal La Torre in the summer of 2020.

Now, the EP returns for 2022 in expanded form, with a trio of fresh, mood-enhancing remixes joining the three original tracks featured on last year’s release. It’s those – ‘Cecilia’, Lovato’s glistening, emotionally resonant musical tribute to his baby daughter, mid-tempo nu-disco gem ‘Echoes of Memories’ and the stunning, sunset-inspired ‘Esperanza’ - that form the first half of the EP, with a trio of reworks following in hot pursuit.

Long-time friends of the label Leo Mas and Fabrice, an Italian duo famed for their brilliant Balearic reworks whose individual and collective histories stretch right back to the late 1980s (Mas, for example, was one of the resident DJs at legendary White Isle venue Amnesia at the back end of that decade). Given this shared Balearic history, it’s fitting that they step up first and give their spin on ‘Cecilia’. Making the most of Lovato’s stunning, reverb-drenched guitar licks, dreamy chords and atmospheric pads, the pair delivers a shuffling, club-ready interpretation underpinned by a locked-in dub disco groove. It’s a fine take on a track brimming with positivity and joy.

Hear & Now, an Italian duo best known for delivering a trio of brilliant albums on Claremont 56, give their interpretation of ‘Echoes of Memories’. Beginning with a mixture of quietly colourful chords, enveloping sonic textures and hazy guitar motifs, the mix gently builds as it progresses, with the pair introducing a pitched-down house groove, chiming electronic melodies and alluring elements from Lovato’s original version. Like much of Hear & Now’s work, it sits somewhere be-tween Balearica, slow-motion electronic disco and the Rimini-friendly dream house sound that marked out Italian club cuts at the turn of the ‘90s.

To close out the EP, rising star Danilo Braca – an Italian producer based in New York City who began DJing in his home country way back in 1996 – gently leads ‘Esperanza’ towards the dancefloor. Braca is a member of production duo Synth & Soda, whose 2020 remix of DJ Harvey presents Locussolus track ‘Berghain’ was selected by the man himself as the winner of an online competition. On this solo revision, Braca wraps a punchy, Latin-tinged house beat in cascading melodic motifs, bubbly synthesizer arpeggio lines, rising and falling electronics and pads so sumptuous you might want to marry them. Simultaneously morning fresh and sunset-ready, Braca has delivered a classic-sounding chunk of Balearic nu-disco/deep house fu-sion.

Gypsophilia Remixed is the latest volume in NuNorthern Soul’s Myths of Ibiza series of EPs, which all feature specially commissioned artwork from illustrator Emily McGuinness. This time round, McGuinness’s distinctive artwork depicts Tanit, the ‘protector goddess’ of Ibiza. A warrior deity of dance, fertility, creation and destruction, her spirit is said to watch over the island’s West Coast, particularly the area around Atlantic and the mysterious Es Vedra rock.

With releases already under their belt from Bilal and Deyayu and a split 12" from Alex Dima and Cristian Sarde, London's Obscura is shaping up to be one of those destined to take up position towards the top of tech house shopping lists everywhere. That said, the four tracks from Arnic have a cheekier, mor sprightly vibe than a lot of tech-house, the likes of 'Night Children' and their tribute to the Glasgow clubbing institution that is the 'Sub Club' drawing on disco and early Chicago house influences, all within the economic and stripped down framework that put a big smile on a DJ's face when they're in the mix.

RLSD Records is proud to showcase its 4th instalment on the Irish imprint. Presenting a Mighty 4 track EP from the heart of Dublin’s Live Techno 'Fran Hartnett' with Radial on remix duties providing rotisserie, synergistic slickness.

For Fran’s second appearance on RLSD he returns with a four track record comprised of FM techno righteousness. From wonky broken thrillers, to straight four to the floor functional deepness, a live excerpt that is simply analogue heaven & the record is complete with a remix from Audio Assault co-founder, Radial.

Only a handful of Irish techno producers have been able to create an enigma quite like Fran Hartnett. With just over a handful of releases to his name, the Dublin based techno arbiter has crafted a legacy that still percolates and influences newer generation while also galvanising Dublin techno mainstays.

This record is a tip of the hat remembering the memorable & pushing the techno sound into its welcomed, evolved soundscape. As a whole this 12" brings a new dimension to FM techno & solidifies the next wave of dark & driving Techno.

Includes a free Poster as a tribute to 'The Dj' exclusively designed by Fran Hartnett

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On her second album (first one on Umor Rex), the Minsk born / Paris based artist Lina Filipovich continues her experiments on deconstruction and re-appropriation of classical pieces. BFHC includes seven electronic interpretations of the works of Baroque composers such as Bach, Handel, Frescobaldi, Carleton and Couperin. Inspired by memories of her experience of interpreting Bach's pieces in early childhood, Filipovich explores the desire to push the limits of performing classical music in the traditional way. Her baroque compositions are manipulated, modified, transformed into loops, cut, slowed down and recycled like any content could be, becoming a raw material for new compositions accompanied by electronic sequences, rhythms and basslines. Through the recycling, sampling and reassembly, Lina creates new listening experiences. And if BFHC can be interpreted as a tribute to baroque music, it can also be understood as a call to action to the work of contemporary artists like Oval, and to all the boom of clicks and cuts at the beginning of this millennium.

Mastered by Rafael Anton Irisarri
Artwork by Daniel Castrejón

A spellbinding tribute from one multi-faceted artist to another. New York-based artist Aki Onda (b. 1967) conjured a transduction to the Korean multi-media pioneer Nam June Paik (1932-2006). Aki himself describes the project:

“Nam June’s Spirit Was Speaking to Me occurred purely by chance. In 2010, I was spending four days at Nam June Paik Art Center in South Korea for a series of performances and had plenty of free time to wander. The building was packed with Paik’s artwork and related material. I have always felt a close kinship with him as an artist, and so it was a great opportunity to immerse myself in his works and ephemera.

It was that night I made the first contact, via a hand-held radio in a hotel room in Seoul. It was literally out of the blue. Scanning through the stations, I stumbled upon what sounded like a submerged voice and I began to record it in fascination. I concluded this was Paik’s spirit reaching out to me.

The project continued to grow organically as I kept channeling Paik’s spirit over long distance and receiving cryptic broadcasts/messages. The series of séances, conducted in different cities across the globe, began in Seoul in 2010, and continued in Köln, Germany in 2012, Wrocław, Poland in 2013, and Lewisburg, USA in 2014. The original recordings were captured by the same radio which has a tape recorder, with almost no editing, save for some minimal slicing and mastering.

Paik is known for his association with shamanism, a practice that constantly surfaces in his works all through his career. In an interview, he stated “In Korea, diverse forms of shamanism are strongly remained. Even though I have created my work unconsciously, the most inspiring thing in my work came from Korean female shaman Mudang.” Paik himself was a master shaman and vividly used shaman rituals and symbols for staging his performances and installations.

These recordings also became a way for me to explore the mythic form of radio—a medium which is full of mysteries. The transmissions captured may be “secret broadcasts” on anonymous radio stations. There are in fact hundreds of those stations around the world, although the numbers dwindle as clandestine messages can now be sent via encrypted digital channels. Some of these stations were likely for military use or espionage or relics of the Cold War. But many others continue without apparent explanation. These are just some of the questions that remain unanswered.”

Commissioned in 2017 by documenta 14's radio program “Every Time A Ear di Soun,” these recordings were continually broadcast on eight radios stations around the world that year. Nam June’s Spirit is a beautifully formed homage, I cannot think of any other like it. An intimate, flickering language discovered through the air. The LP comes replete with a booklet of photographs of Paik on the set of Michael Snow’s unreleased film Rameau’s Nephew (1974).

Sean McCann, 2020
Aki Onda, 2017

20-page art booklet including rare photographs of Nam June Paik from the set of Michael Snow’s film Rameau’s Nephew (1974), two essays on radio-wave phenomenon (by Onda and Marcus Gammel), and a remembrance of Paik by Yuji Agematsu

Limited Baby Pink Vinyl LP. P.H.F. is the recording project of Auckland, NZ songwriter and producer Joe Locke. From its origins in Locke's 2008 bedroom productions, P.H.F. has gone on to collaborate with artists like Clairo and ARTHUR, toured globally, and had music released on pioneering vaporwave label Crystal Magic, before settling at its current home, Danger Collective Records. P.H.F's highly anticipated 2022 LP Purest Hell stands as a love letter to Locke's close friend and essential collaborator Reuben Winter (milk, Totems) who passed away in September 2020. Expanding on the genre-bending ambition of New Metal, Locke uses musical experimentation as a way to process grief, incorporating shredding guitar, careening breakbeat chops, and heavy electronics as a way of paying tribute to, and feeling closer to Winter. While tracks like "Skincare" and "A Letter From Purest Hell" draw power from a deep and impactful sense of loss, the album is more than just an elegy, but a celebration of life of a beloved friend and musical innovator. Locke rises to the occasion, and with the help of collaborators Fantasyluv, Rew, and fellow 909 Worldwide members 99jakes & Forcefeeded, crafts his strongest and most affecting collection of songs to date // Also Available From P.H.F. New Metal LP/CD, Anthology LP

SABROSA pays tribute to the BEASTIE BOYS with two instro-mental cuts that borrow elements from "Sure Shot" out of their classic album, "Ill Communication".

Sure Pow is a great fuzzy, wah wah guitar Grant Green-on-steroids soundtrack approach to "Pow" from "Check Your Head", while Tangerine Shot is a cover of Suco De Tangerina, an instrumental track out of their "Mix-Up" Lp that takes a twist into Dub territoire…Pure fiyah!

The Qualitons are one of the few internationally known and critically acclaimed bands Hungary has had to offer in recent years.

They played at numerous festivals across Europe and the USA, performed a live session at legendary indie station KEXP and have released a total of four albums.

Their latest (and last) LP called Kexek is a beautiful and respectful tribute to the music of KEX, one of the most legendary, interesting, and tragic bands of Hungarian music history.
Their avant-garde performances were ahead of their time (especially in communist Hungary) and resulted in brutal repression from the authorities.

They could release only one official single before they were literally smashed by the police, to save his life, key figure Janos Baksa-Soos even had to flee the country.

The concept of the Kexek album was simple: each member of The Qualitons picked one KEX song which they had full creative control over, they re-arranged, mixed them individually and then recorded the tracks together.
What came out of this process is a unique, yet consistent mix of folk, psychedelic, and progressive funk-rock that gets more exciting with each listen.

The LP is limited to 500 copies worldwide.

Pink Vinyl

On Electro Records' ''Sci Fi Electro'' series, each artist has created a 15 minute track for each side of the record, taking you from pure electro tracks to very experimental compositions, sounds and atmospheres. Each side is divided in ''movements'' in a continuous morphing process without any pause between different tracks. The series is a collection of seven releases inspired by the following films created in the 20th century: THX 1138, 2001 A Space Odyssey, Blade Runner, The Thing, Akira, Terminator and Tron.

To a degree, all musicians are a product of their environment, the places they record and the venues they play. For proof, check out the alumni of the n-wave era CBGBs venue in New York, Cabaret Voltaire’s Western Works studio in Sheffield or more recently London’s Total Refreshment Centre.

We can now add to that list the Constellations Workshop in Colwick, Nottingham, a project that provides employment through making studio furniture, for out-of-work musicians. It was here, after-hours, that the music on Brown Fang’s impressive and ear-catching debut album took shape.

Both members of Brown Fang, bassist John Thompson and guitarist Henry Scott AKA Henry Claude, have a long association with the Constellations Workshop. Though their musical projects are manifold – Thompson having toured with the likes of The Nectarine No9 and The Selecter, with Scott being both a mainstay of Nottingham jazz circuit and recording ambient music as Fang Jr – the work provided by the community-minded project has kept their heads above water and allowed them a space to record in when the shutters go down and the bandsaws get switched off.

Yet the music showcased on Sherwood Pines is more morning-fresh and sun-kissed than industrial and sawdust-sprinkled. Combining the pair’s brilliant musicianship – think languid bass guitars and Pat Martino-esque jazz guitar licks – with saucer-eyed electronics, occasional downtempo drum machine rhythms and plenty of glistening special effects, the set’s eight tracks are as blissful and becalmed as an early morning saunter through Sherwood Forest on a misty autumn morning.

For proof, check epic opener ‘Tracing Paper’, a slow-build ambient soundscape in which bubbly electronic lead lines and colourful chords sashay around Scott’s sparkling, laidback guitars, and the beguiling ‘That’s All You Can Think’, a subtle tribute to Steve Reich masterpiece ‘Electric Counterpoint’ in which slow-burn, stretched out synthesizer sounds wave in and out of a gradually evolving cycle of delay-laden electric guitar motifs.

The band’s love of classic American minimalism – as well as a shared love of the Duratti Column and Robert Fripp – comes to the fore on ‘HDMI I Love You’, which boasts a deliciously dubby bassline, Tangerine Dream style synths and the deepest of ambient chords, while ‘I Nearly Married a Human’ and ‘Fridgewords’ balance bespoke electronics – languid, dewy eyed and comforting – with Scott’s gorgeously laidback, slow-release guitars.

Every great album needs a triumphant conclusion, and Sherwood Pines is no different. You can hear everything that makes Brown Fang great on ‘Goodbye Donkey Jacket’, from the pin sharp, effects laden jazziness of Scott’s guitars and the fluid dexterity of Thompson’s bass, to the pleasingly spacey pulse of the synths and the gentle rhythms of the soft-focus machine drums. It’s a confident, ear-catching conclusion to a debut album that’s been years in the making.

Repress

Bump 'n Grind Wax's newest relief channels a collective sigh of relief, one that promises to remind the world that joy and love can triumph through togetherness.

Bristol's sonic luminary, Rob Smith (aka RSD), has offered his support in this dynamic cover of Al Green's "Let's Stay Together." With a hint of lover's rock and a dash of neo-soul, RSD invites Denise Morgan to voice this timeless tune. On the A-side, prominent piano runs, synth stabs, and RSD's iconic drum section frame Morgan's deliciously-soulful approach to this classic. RSD brings the magic for the B-side version, "Let's Dub Together." With a blown-out bassline, Denise's tricked out vocal samples, and a thoughtful caressing of the track's timing, reverb, and echo, RSD adds his undeniable signature to the latest BnG Wax tribute.

A formidable architect behind the now-beloved "Bristol Sound," Rob has been an irreplaceable thread in the development of bass-heavy dance music since the 1980s. From raves to basements, lounges to sound system dances, Rob has pushed the limits of music technology to forge a vital link between the past and future. He is a pioneer who has explored the intersections of nearly every genre through dubbed-out breaks, drops, and quintessential remixes. BnG Wax is honored to have his fingerprints on one of our releases.